Gunfire broke out on the 100 block of Parma Avenue at Arbor Place Townhouses in New Castle on Saturday evening, and by the following Monday, detectives had a name, an arrest, and a $95,000 bail order. No one was hit by the bullets, but a vehicle was struck and several spent cartridge casings were left scattered across the roadway.
According to a release from the New Castle County Police Department, officers responded to the shots-fired call at approximately 6:24 p.m. that Saturday. Detectives with the department's Criminal Investigations Unit took over the case and quickly zeroed in on two vehicles they believed were involved: a Chevrolet Silverado with Delaware plates and a Subaru bearing Pennsylvania registration. Investigators say the confrontation stemmed from an altercation involving several individuals before a firearm was discharged.
Detectives leaned on automated license plate reader technology to pull registration information tied to the Silverado, which led them to identify 32-year-old Antonio Feliciano, Jr. of New Castle as a suspect, the department says. Both vehicles were later located in another local community in New Castle, according to the same release. Feliciano turned himself in at New Castle County Police headquarters the following Sunday.
Charges Stack Up Under Delaware's Firearm Statutes
Feliciano was arraigned at Justice of the Peace Court 11 and now faces one felony count of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, two felony counts of Reckless Endangering in the First Degree, and a misdemeanor count of Criminal Mischief under $1,000, per the department's account. Under Title 11, Section 1447A of the Delaware Code, the firearm possession charge is a Class B felony; the cited Delaware General Assembly material displays three years as the existing minimum and also presents legislation proposing an increase to five years. Reckless Endangering in the First Degree, meanwhile, is classified as a Class E felony under Title 11, Section 604, defined as recklessly creating a substantial risk of death to another person, according to Delaware Code Online.
Justice of the Peace Court 11, located at 2 Penns Way in New Castle, operates around the clock and has criminal jurisdiction, per Delaware Courts. Delaware Courts lists the court as operating around the clock. Feliciano was committed in lieu of the $95,000 cash bail set at his hearing and was sent to Howard R. Young Correctional Institution, the Wilmington facility commonly known as Gander Hill Prison.
Gander Hill Houses Both Pre-Trial and Sentenced Inmates
Howard R. Young Correctional Institution operates with a capacity of 1,180 beds under the Delaware Department of Correction, according to Delaware Department of Correction records. The facility houses both pre-trial detainees and inmates already sentenced, according to State of Delaware News, meaning Feliciano is currently held alongside people at very different stages of the justice system while his case proceeds.
The Parma Avenue case involved the use of automated license plate reader technology. New Castle County Police have used automated license plate reader cameras. The technology is used in department investigations.
A Growing Reliance on Camera Networks
The Parma Avenue shooting is not the only recent case where the technology was used. Hoodline previously reported that ALPR led to an arrest in the September 6 shooting death of Donald Nave in Wilmington's Colonial Heights neighborhood, where a suspect was held on $1 million bail. Detectives in that case relied on ALPR to trace a suspect vehicle. Together, the cases show that ALPR has been used in more than one gun investigation.
The shooting unfolded at Arbor Place Townhouses. The department's broader caseload is not detailed here. It remains unclear whether other participants in the underlying altercation that preceded the gunfire will face charges of their own.
